House of Commons Library Talk
Session outline
The government is expected to set out its defence and foreign policy priorities before the NATO summit. This talk will highlight the key points and lookahead to the main topics of discussion for NATO at its summit on 24-26 June.
Time: 10:30 – 11:30
Date: 19 June 2025
Location: Online
Registration: https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?f=3479
Presented by the National Audit Office and the House of Commons Library.
Time: 10:30-11:30
Date: Thursday 5 June 2025
Location: Online via Teams
Over one in four women are estimated to be victims of sexual assault or attempted assault in their lifetime, and one in 12 women are victims of VAWG each year, although the actual number is likely to be much higher. The National Police Chiefs’ Council reported that, in 2022-23, 20% of all police-recorded crime was related to violence against women and girls. Violence against women and girls can have long-term impacts on victims, affecting them physically, mentally, socially and financially. The new government has committed to halve the prevalence of VAWG within a decade as part of its ‘mission’ to make streets safer. The Home Office will lead this mission and is developing a new VAWG strategy.
In this report, the NAO has examined the Home Office’s leadership of the 2021 “Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls” Strategy (the VAWG Strategy) and the 2022 “Tackling Domestic Abuse Plan” (the Domestic Abuse Plan), to identify lessons to support the delivery of the government’s ambition to halve violence against women and girls. This report looks at how successful the Home Office has been in leading an effective cross-government response to the issue in order to achieve this aim.
To register, please visit this page on the intranet: https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?id=7608
Time: 14:30-15:30
Date: 4 June 2025
Location: Teams
With Donal Galligan (Chief Executive of the Ombudsman Association) and Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) staff, as well as Library specialists covering different ombudsman schemes
Also: Digital Services staff will give a quick update on the Register of Interests for Members Staff service
To register, please visit https://parliament.learningpool.com/course/view.php?id=1953
Building on the success of last year’s packed The House magazine Staffer Reception and the launch of The Staff Room newsletter now with over 700 subscribers, we’re excited to expand our support for parliamentary staff with The House Staffer Network series.
Hosted in Parliament, these in-person workshops are designed to help you sharpen your skills, tackle real workplace challenges, and connect with peers from across the political spectrum. Whether you’re new to Westminster or looking to make a greater impact in your role, this is your space to learn, share, and grow.
The first workshop you can sign up to attend is: HEALTH AND WELLBEING IN THE WORKPLACE
Tuesday, 1 July 2025 | 19:15 – 21:00 | Attlee Suite, Portcullis House
In this workshop, we’ll cover:
All workshops will include an informal reception, offering a chance to network with other staffers and discuss shared challenges and experiences.
If you would prefer to RSVP via email or if you have any questions about the event, please do not hesitate to contact us here.
And if you haven’t already, don’t miss out – sign up to the Staff Room newsletter from The House today.
Good Information Toolkit Talk from the House of Commons Library
How does health literacy impact constituents and the NHS? Join us for an essential session focused on improving health literacy, where we will ask:
What is health literacy?
If you’re working in a constituency, this session can help you engage with communities about their health and support informed decision-making.
Time: 14:00
Date: 20 May 2025
Location: Online
Further information and registration: https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?id=7476
Time: 14:30 – 15:30
Date: 8 May 2025
Location: Online via MS Teams
The Casework Discussion Forum takes place each month via MS Teams.
The topic for May’s forum meeting will be a Local transport Q&A (UK wide). We’ll be joined by Roger Tyers and Mike Benson from the Library’s Business and Transport team, and Iona Stewart from the Library’s Social and General Statistics team.
The forum is complemented by a dedicated Teams chat which enables you to share ideas and best practice, with support being on hand from the Library should specialist knowledge be required.
You do not have to be a caseworker to attend these sessions – they are open to any Members’ staff who handle casework.
House of Commons Library Talk
Session outline
People who move to the UK can often make it their permanent home after a while by applying for indefinite leave to remain and then British citizenship. We’ll discuss how this works, how long it normally takes and recent announcements in this area from both the Labour government and Conservative opposition.
Time: 10:30 – 11:30
Date: 8 May 2025
Location: Online
Registration: https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?f=3477
The Bank of England would like to invite the staff of MPs based in Scotland to attend a briefing session on the work of the Bank on Tuesday 27 May from 11.00-13.00 at a venue in the centre of Glasgow.
Senior Bank staff will deliver a briefing on how the work of the Bank of England affects constituents, with an introduction to our work in Scotland from our Scottish Agency. With an interest rate decision on 8 May, this will be an ideal opportunity to learn more about the work of the Bank and ask your constituents’ questions.
If you would like to attend, please email ParliamentaryAffairs@bankofengland.co.uk to book a place in person.
We would be grateful if you could share this with any colleagues based in constituency offices in Glasgow and the surrounding area who may be interested in attending.
Please note this session is for staffers only. However, we hold regular briefing sessions for MPs to keep them up to date on the Bank’s policymaking. The next session for MPs will be held in the Bank of England’s London office on 24 April and Members are welcome to get in touch to learn more.
We look forward to welcoming you to the Bank of England. You can learn more about our Agent for Scotland here.
House of Commons Library Talk
Session outline
Cash access, use and acceptance are declining. Recent legislation has tried to address the issues this causes for people reliant on cash. This talk will outline the law in this area and how caseworkers can help constituents with cash access requests.
Time: 10:30 – 11:30
Date: 24 April 2025
Location: Online
Registration: https://parliament.learningpool.com/mod/facetoface/view.php?id=7498
By Jennifer Lees-Marshment
Professor of Political Management and Marketing at The University of Dundee
Wednesday April 2nd at 2pm
This workshop will present practical recommendations for supporting staff in political offices. These were created by interviewing political advisors who worked for Prime Ministers, Ministers and MPs in the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand about what they had found worked best within the realities of politics and government.
Participants will also get the opportunity to reflect on which recommendations they might consider implementing, and to share any additional practices they have found useful.
This will be of interest to existing and prospective staffers and special advisers, and those already support and manage colleagues, teams or offices or aspire to in the future.
Brief author intro
Jennifer Lees-Marshment is Professor of Political Marketing and Management at The University of Dundee and interviewed over 65 advisors who worked for Prime Ministers, Ministers and MPs in the UK, New Zealand, Australia and Canada to identify over 50 best practice recommendations for improving the support and management of political staffers.
To receive the Teams link to this session, please email mpsstaff-wwg@parliament.uk